Chapter 186 – Upperclassmen Lead by Example

Chapter 186 – Upperclassmen Lead by Example

“Let’s go! Back to the dormitory!”

This year, it was Mo Lan and her classmates’ turn to lead the new students back to the dormitory.

Outside the Castle’s east gate, the third-year and fifth-year young witches flew off on their brooms, while the fourth-years set up camp right there in the small plaza outside the east gate.

“What are the upperclassmen doing…?” Some new students were puzzled by this.

“It’s an astromancy ritual — a back-to-school tradition for fourth-years. They’re divining their fortunes for the coming term. Witches from other years aren’t allowed to disturb them. If the ritual fails, it brings bad luck.” Mo Lan kindly explained on behalf of the upperclassmen.

Vasida and Sylph glanced at her, then nodded and added, “When you’re fourth-years, you’ll do the same thing.”

This wasn’t about protecting the upperclassmen’s dignity — it was about protecting their own future dignity.

In two years, they too would have to move out of the dormitory.

If even the three of them who knew the truth went along with it, the other second-year witches who didn’t know were even more convincing, chiming in one after another that it had been the same last year.

The new students believed it. Under the second-years’ urging, they lined up and began the descent down the mountain.

The long mountain path gradually ground away the young witches’ initial excitement about arriving at the Academy. “This is way too far!”

“You’ll get used to it with practice,” Sylph consoled them. “When I first came here last year, I also thought this mountain path was impossibly difficult — like it had no end, like I could never finish it.”

“Every time I walked it, I felt like my stamina couldn’t keep up, and my feet ached terribly.”

“But now, I don’t feel anything anymore.”

“Once you get used to it, it’ll be fine.”

The new students asked, “How long does it take to get used to it?”

“About half a year!” Sylph said.

The new students: “…”

Somehow that made it even more terrifying. What were they supposed to do?

“Think of it positively — making this round trip every day is basically exercise. Growth in magical power also requires a healthy body. Poor nutrition and bad health won’t just stunt your growth — your magical power will increase slowly too.” Mo Lan encouraged them as well.

“And don’t worry about wasting time. Once you’re familiar with the route, you can do other things along the way — like reading or reciting from textbooks, Attuning objects, things like that. Two birds with one stone.”

The new students: “(?!)”

Reading and reciting while walking? What kind of terrifying things was this upperclassman saying?

Bertha had already sensed something was off. “Are the upperclassmen really that pressed for time? Walking the mountain path is already exhausting enough — you’re reading and reciting at the same time?”

“Walking is pretty boring anyway. Reading is great — not only does it take your mind off the trek, you also learn things. When you’re reading, you’ll wish the mountain path were longer, not shorter!” Mo Lan shared her walking techniques.

The new students were trembling as they listened.

As expected of a Sorceress — she thought completely differently from ordinary young witches!

“That’s right! You should make use of the time on the road too. Don’t worry about safety — the Headmistress will rescue you in time.”

“Yes, yes, yes — if you make use of the travel time, you’ll have more free time later.”

…

The second-year witches all emphasized the importance of studying while walking.

They had long since gotten used to the grind.

The new students: “…”

So it wasn’t just Moira — all the upperclassmen were like this.

The Witch Academy seemed quite different from what they had imagined.

“Huh? Did you two just nod? Did you?” Bertha caught Anna and Annie’s movements and asked in disbelief. “You’re not actually planning to do what they said, are you?”

Anna and Annie: “??? Is that not allowed?”

The upperclassmen were sharing their experience, and they were listening carefully. Was there a problem with that?

“I mean, you can, but reading while walking — isn’t that a bit much?” Bertha, who had spent thirteen happy years playing and having fun, couldn’t quickly adapt to this change.

“Bertha, we don’t know what witch society is like, and we haven’t seen much of the world. But we do know that all knowledge is precious, and opportunities to learn are truly rare.”

“The legacy left by our witch predecessors gave us the chance to learn for free. We should cherish it and learn as much as we possibly can!”

“When you’re walking, your eyes and mouth are free anyway — why not use them for reading and reciting?” Annie said.

Anna nodded and looked at her classmates who had yet to learn how cruel the world could be. “A place like the Witch Academy is practically paradise. But other places aren’t like this.”

“Only by mastering magic can you protect yourself. You don’t want to experience the feeling of being bullied by bad people and being powerless to do anything about it.”

The sisters’ words carried an unspoken weight.

Thinking about Natural Awakeners, and remembering what the sisters had looked like when they first appeared, the new students fell silent and began seriously pondering her words.

Mo Lan whispered to Sylph and Vasida with satisfaction, “The first-years have found their own leaders! No need to worry about the new students lacking motivation to study.”

“You were worried about that?” Vasida said in surprise. “Even if they didn’t want to study, one look at the workbooks and monthly exams should change their minds. Otherwise, getting rewarded with just one workbook per month — how miserable would that be!”

“Which is exactly why you need me!” Mo Lan said smugly.

“I really want to see them being crushed — er, I mean, motivated by the workbooks and exams!” Sylph said.

The new students felt a chill run down their spines. They turned to look at the three Sorceress upperclassmen bringing up the rear and couldn’t help feeling that something about their gazes was… unsettling.

The mountain path had tortured the new students’ feet. Now the dormitory proceeded to torture their eyes.

“Maybe the dormitory just looks run-down on the outside…” Bertha tried to comfort herself.

“Don’t worry. It looks run-down, and it feels just as run-down to live in. But it has everything you need,” Iris said.

The new students: “…”

“With this much overgrowth, how long has it been since anyone lived here? Can people actually live in this?”

“The upperclassmen who got promoted to fourth year just moved out today! These weeds… are a training exercise the Academy prepared for everyone,” Mo Lan said.

They found it strange too — the upperclassmen had only moved out at noon, and by evening when they passed through, every single courtyard was already choked with waist-high weeds.

The shock to the new students was even greater than what they themselves had experienced when they first arrived last year.

At least back then, the first thing they had seen were courtyards that the upperclassmen had tended and maintained for years.

Regardless of what the new students thought, they were definitely going to be living in these dormitories.

After Mo Lan and the others led the new students to the dormitory area, they left them to their own devices and headed to their own dormitory further back.

Passing by the third-year dormitories, Vasida remarked, “The third-year dormitories are in such a great spot. Last year, on the second morning of school, the upperclassmen watched us haul water from the water tower in their backyard. This year, they can watch the new students haul water from their front yard.”

By now, they certainly wouldn’t be naive enough to think the upperclassmen’s Spring Water spell just naturally produced such a thin stream.

It was clearly deliberate — they had made the stream that thin so they could watch the younger students struggle with hauling water for longer, slowly filling the water tower on purpose.

Mo Lan’s eyes lit up with an idea, “I saw the new academic year’s reading list in the 《Academic Year Plan》, and the Second-Year Reading Room is open to us now, right? How about going to the Castle tomorrow morning to copy from the books?”

“Great idea! As upperclassmen, we should lead by example!” the other second-year witches chimed in.